The Troubled Empire: China in the Yuan and Ming Dynasties (History of Imperial China Book 5)

The Mongol takeover in the 1270s changed the course of Chinese history. The Confucian empire―a millennium and a half in the making―was suddenly thrust under foreign occupation. What China had been before its reunification as the Yuan dynasty in 1279 was no longer what it would be in the future. Four centuries later, another wave of steppe invaders would replace the Ming dynasty with yet another foreign occupation. __The Troubled Empire__ explores what happened to China between these two dramatic invasions. If anything defined the complex dynamics of this period, it was changes in the weather. Asia, like Europe, experienced a Little Ice Age, and as temperatures fell in the thirteenth century, Kublai Khan moved south into China. His Yuan dynasty collapsed in less than a century, but Mongol values lived on in Ming institutions. A second blast of cold in the 1630s, combined with drought, was more than the dynasty could stand, and the Ming fell to Manchu invaders Against this background―the first coherent ecological history of China in this period―**Timothy Brook** explores the growth of autocracy, social complexity, and commercialization, paying special attention to China’s incorporation into the larger South China Sea economy. These changes not only shaped what China would become but contributed to the formation of the early modern world.

"The Mongol takeover in the 1270s changed the course of Chinese history. The Confucian empire—a millennium and a half in the making—was suddenly thrust under foreign occupation. What China had been before its reunification as the Yuan dynasty in 1279 was no longer what it would be in the future. Four centuries later, another wave of steppe invaders would replace the Ming dynasty with yet another foreign occupation. The Troubled Empire explores what happened to China between these two dramatic invasions.If anything defined the complex dynamics of this period, it was changes in the weather. Asia, like Europe, experienced a Little Ice Age, and as temperatures fell in the thirteenth century, Kublai Khan moved south into China. His Yuan dynasty collapsed in less than a century, but Mongol values lived on in Ming institutions. A second blast of cold in the 1630s, combined with drought, was more than the dynasty could stand, and the Ming fell to Manchu invaders.Against this background—the first coherent ecological history of China in this period—Timothy Brook explores the growth of autocracy, social complexity, and commercialization, paying special attention to China's incorporation into the larger South China Sea economy. These changes not only shaped what China would become but contributed to the formation of the early modern world."

The Mongol takeover in the 1270s changed the course of Chinese history. The Confucian empire―a millennium and a half in the making―was suddenly thrust under foreign occupation. What China had been before its reunification as the Yuan dynasty in 1279 was no longer what it would be in the future. Four centuries later, another wave of steppe invaders would replace the Ming dynasty with yet another foreign occupation. The Troubled Empire explores what happened to China between these two dramatic invasions. If anything defined the complex dynamics of this period, it was changes in the weather. Asia, like Europe, experienced a Little Ice Age, and as temperatures fell in the thirteenth century, Kublai Khan moved south into China. His Yuan dynasty collapsed in less than a century, but Mongol values lived on in Ming institutions. A second blast of cold in the 1630s, combined with drought, was more than the dynasty could stand, and the Ming fell to Manchu invaders Against this background―the first coherent ecological history of China in this period― Timothy Brook explores the growth of autocracy, social complexity, and commercialization, paying special attention to China’s incorporation into the larger South China Sea economy. These changes not only shaped what China would become but contributed to the formation of the early modern world. This volume explores the history of China between the Mongol reunification of China in 1279 under the Yuan dynasty and the Manchu invasion four centuries later, explaining how climate changes profoundly affected the empire during this period. The Mongol takeover in the 1270s changed the course of Chinese history. The Confucian empire, a millennium and a half in the making, was suddenly thrust under foreign occupation. What China had been before its reunification as the Yuan dynasty in 1279 was no longer what it would be in the future. Four centuries later, another wave of steppe invaders would replace the Ming dynasty with yet another foreign occupation Explores The History Of China Between The Mongol Reunification Of China In 1279 Under The Yuan Dynasty And The Manchu Invasion Four Centuries Later, Explaining How Climate Changes Profoundly Affected The Empire During This Period. Dragon Spotting -- Scale -- The Nine Sloughs -- Khan And Emperor -- Economy And Ecology -- Families -- Beliefs -- The Business Of Things -- The South China Sea -- Collapse -- Conclusion -- Temperature And Precipitation Extremes -- The Nine Sloughs -- Succession Of Emperors -- Pronunciation Guide. Timothy Brook. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [297]-316) And Index. Contents 6 Introduction 8 1. Dragon Spotting 13 2. Scale 31 3. The Nine Sloughs 57 4. Khan and Emperor 86 5. Economy and Ecology 113 6. Families 141 7. Beliefs 168 8. The Business of Things 193 9. The South China Sea 220 10. Collapse 245 Conclusion 267 Temperature and Precipitation Extremes 276 The Nine Sloughs 277 Succession of Emperors 278 Pronunciation Guide 280 Notes 281 Bibliography 304 Acknowledgments 324 Index 325 Dragon spotting Scale The nine sloughs Autocracy Economy/ecology Families Beliefs The business of culture The South China Sea Collapse Precipitation and temperature, 1260-1644 The nine sloughs of the Yuan and Ming dynasties Succession of emperors, 1271-1644 Pronunciation guide.